Thousands flee as Sudan army seizes flashpoint town

Thousands of civilians were fleeing fighting in Sudan?s contested Abyei district on Sunday, as the southern army admitted northern troops were in full control of its main town."The fighting has been very, very bad," said Philip Aguer, spokesman for the south?s Sudan People?s Liberation Army.Late on Saturday, northern troops of the Sudan Armed Forces took the town of Abyei, focal point of deadly tensions between north and south in the run-up to the planned recognition of southern independence in late July, Aguer said.

Related

The armies of north and south Sudan clashed on Wednesday in Abyei, the southern army said, just two days after Khartoum and Juba reached a provisional accord to demilitarise the flashpoint border region."There was a clash today at the Kiir (Bahr al-Arab) river, near the bridge, between the SAF (Sudanese Armed Forces -- northern army) and the SPLA," said Philip Aguer, spokesman for the south's former rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army."There was shooting but no reports available of any casualties. It was the SAF trying to come south, but just a patrol," Aguer told AFP.

Sudanese government troops Saturday took control of the key town in the contested border region of Abyei after fierce fighting with the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), UN and rebel sources said."The SAF have entered (the town) Abyei, there is still fighting but they have come with tanks, they are shooting and shooting," said SPLA spokesman Philip Aguer."Our police have been fighting but the SAF have sent many soldiers in," he added, speaking by phone from Juba, the capital of southern Sudan.

By Carl OderaJUBA (Reuters) - South Sudan's army on Monday denied using cluster bombs in its fight with rebels, shrugging off a U.N. report that fragments of the widely-banned explosives had been found.

By Carl OderaJUBA (Reuters) - The South Sudanese army said on Sunday it had repulsed three rebel attacks on its positions near the market town of Bor, which is regarded as a gateway to the capital Juba.Thousands have been killed and more than 800,000 have fled their homes since fighting began in South Sudan two months ago, triggered by a power struggle between President Salva Kiir and Riek Machar, his former deputy whom he sacked in July.

JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — A South Sudanese military official says 52 rebels and army soldiers have been killed in fighting in the contested Unity state.Military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer said Saturday that rebels attacked government positions, killing 14 soldiers. He said government troops have killed 38 rebels.Aguer said the clashes, which started Monday and continued Friday, took place in Leer and Koch, which government soldiers had to abandon following intense fighting.

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — South Sudan President Salva Kiir has assured U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry that he would sign a peace deal with his rival within days, the State Department said Wednesday, as fighting resumed in parts of the country.During a telephone call, Kiir assured the top American diplomat that he would sign the deal he refused to sign on Monday after "a couple of more days of consultation," State Department spokesman John Kirby said."That's obviously encouraging," Kirby told reporters.

Sudan's army has launched repeated air strikes on the southern army in Unity state in a bid to seize oilfields there weeks before the south's independence, a southern army spokesman said.Philip Aguer, spokesman for the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) of the south, said the SPLA was on "maximum alert" and strengthening its defensive positions, fearing the start of an invasion to seize the oilfields."SAF aircraft bombed the area of Yau, in Unity state, many times on Thursday," Aguer told AFP, referring to the north's Sudanese Armed Forces.

Clashes between the southern army and a rebel militia group in south Sudan's Upper Nile state have left more than 40 people dead, including seven soldiers, southern army spokesman Philip Aguer said on Monday."There was fighting on Sunday between the SPLA and a former militia group under Ulony, a militia commander who had been in the service of Khartoum for a long time," the spokesman for the Sudan People's Liberation Army told AFP.

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Fighting resumed in parts of South Sudan between government troops and rebel forces, two days after the president declined to sign a peace deal, a military spokesman said Wednesday.President Salva Kiir, under international pressure to reach a compromise agreement with rebel leader Riek Machar, surprised mediators on Monday when he refused to sign the peace agreement after days of negotiations, saying he needs more time to consult.

At least 16 people died when rebels attacked south Sudanese troops in troubled Jonglei state, breaking a ceasefire signed last month, a southern army spokesman said on Thursday."We are still waiting for full details of the casualties," said Philip Aguer, spokesman for the south's Sudan People?s Liberation Army (SPLA), adding that he feared the death toll would rise."The rebels launched their attacks on Wednesday at 1:00 pm (1000 GMT) killing four of our soldiers, but the army fought back and 12 of the attackers were killed," Aguer told AFP.